The Seven
by thekyuubivixen
Summary: The disastrous seven could show up at anytime and anyplace. There are no warnings. If you see any one of them...it's too late. You're not in control of your life anymore.


**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

**I wanted to try out something new guys! And here it is, my first one-shot! It's an AU story, but what kind, you ask? Well, it's not gonna be told outright, so you're gonna have to figure it out. X) Hope you enjoy! **

**Warnings- Slight drunkedness, hints of a couple 'getting jiggy with it', and fire...**

* * *

It was a clear Friday night and a popular club was buzzing with lively activity. Music was blasting from the speakers, humans and Mobians alike were dancing on the dance floor, and the sound of excited voices filled the building, almost as loud as the booming bass. There were groups of young adults having fun, socializing, eating, and drinking at the bar. Everyone was having a good time.

Well, except for one.

A lone occupant sat at the bar, one hand loosely gripping a full glass of beer. He would occasionally sigh to himself before scratching at his dirty blonde hair, something obviously torturing his mind. Strangers who would try to engage in conversation were quickly shot down by his standoffish behavior. He even ignored the flirting bartender, too engaged in his own stressed-out thoughts to care.

He didn't even acknowledge when someone sat down next to him and ordered a tall beer, just like him. He didn't move his grey eyes from his glass until he felt someone's eyes on him. Letting out a small sigh, the blonde glanced over to his left, looking past his fringe. He jumped slightly in surprise when he saw that the Mobian was staring intensely at him, for some reason.

When their gazes met, the other grinned and raised a hand in greeting.

"Hey man, sorry for starin'." The echidna took a gulp of his drink. "You look like you have something on your mind. Want to share?"

The blonde just turned back to stare at his drink, silently rejecting the other's offer to talk.

The red Mobian chuckled. "I get it. You don't want to talk to a stranger. Let's fix that." He took another sip before holding out his gloved hand. "The name's Knuckles."

No response.

"Humph." Knuckles scoffed, wiping away some condensation on his cup. "That's rude of you Jacob…"

The blonde whipped his head around, wide eyed. "How…?"

Knuckles smirked. "You're kinda famous around here. Who doesn't know the youngest lawyer around at only twenty-three?"

Jacob flinched at his title, gaze going back to his drink. "Yeah. That's me."

The echidna rose a brow before swallowing a gulp. "What was that about?" He then snapped his fingers. "Wait…is your job title the reason you're brooding now?" Jacob frowned, but didn't say anything. "What's wrong?" Knuckles pressed. "Not enough pay? Tough hours?"

Thinking that the other would stop pestering him if he answered, the blonde sighed again. "Nothing's wrong with my job, just my client." He took a sip of his own drink. Jacob glanced over and thought he saw the ghost of a smirk, but dismissed it, since it was gone now. "I know he killed someone, but I'm ordered to defend him." Jacob furrowed his brow as he felt the alcohol circulating in his system. He could feel his cheeks flushing, but he only took one sip... He wasn't that bad at holding alcohol, was he?

Knuckles tisked, three-quarters of his drink gone. "That's unfortunate man. When's the trial?"

"Tomorrow."

The echidna grinned and patted Jacob on the back, earning a wince. "Then worry about that when you wake up in the morning! Come on, you're in a _club!_ Enjoy yourself! Worrying won't do you any good here." Knuckles finished off his beer before hailing down the bartender. "'Nother one over here!" As soon as he got it, the red one downed half of the drink in a couple seconds. "Stop thinking about the future, you're in the right now." Knuckles held up his cup with a grin. "Let's get _wasted._"

Jacob just stared, thinking through his clouded mind. It would stop him from dreading what was to come, at least temporarily. That was good enough.

With a small smile, he clinked the Mobian's cup with his before downing the beer.

They drank, and drank, and drank…

Until Jacob blacked out and fell to the floor. Before he was completely unconscious, he heard voices in the distance talking about alcohol poisoning…and drinking for two…

* * *

A young college student sat on her couch in her apartment not that far away from campus, staring blankly at the white screen of her computer, fingers sitting immobile on the home row keys. She had been in this position for the past thirty minutes, and her leg was beginning to shake up and down out of natural habit when she was frustrated.

She glanced over to the clock on the wall and ran a hand down her brown face in exasperation when she saw that it was ten-thirty at night. The cat flicked her ear in irritation, upset at herself that she had waited this long to complete her english paper that was due next class, which was at nine o'clock the next morning. And the feline had to turn it in before that time so she could pass the class.

The brunette held her face in her hands, cursing her horrible procrastination. And what's worse, she had _no_ idea what her topic was. If only – Wait! She popped her head up and smiled widely. She had it! She knew exactly what to type! The feline positioned her fingers and got ready to move-

The doorbell rang.

Blinking, she removed the computer from her lap and shuffled over to her door, wondering who would visit at this time of night. The cat opened the door and blinked again when she saw a young rabbit with big brown eyes at her doorstep.

"Um…hi?"

The bunny played with the bottom of her dress nervously. "H-Hello… I'm sorry to disturb you…"

The feline shook her head. "No no, it's fine." She smiled politely. "Is there something you need?" _At the dead of night?_

"W-Well… I was wondering if I could stay here for tonight…"

The cat did a double take. _Say what now?_ "Excuse me?"

"Y-You see…" The cream colored bunny wringed her hands together. "I-I snuck out my house to play hide-and-seek with my friends in the woods...and I got really lost…" Tears sprung up in her eyes. "I would just ask for directions and go home…but it's really dark…"

_So that's why._ Making a decision, the cat stepped aside to let the younger in. "There's no way I would let you wonder at night!" She closed the door after the rabbit came inside.

The bunny gave a wobbly smile after yawning. "Thank you miss!"

"No problem! Um, what's your name? I'm Erika."

"I'm Cream." The younger answered, rubbing her eyes.

Erika frowned. "Are you tired? You can take my bed and I can sleep on the couch for tonight."

Cream shook her head. "No, I'm fine!" She glanced around. "So what are you doing?"

"I was working on a paper…"

"But that's boring Miss Erika! Do you have any games?"

_It's kinda funny how she was just crying._ "I have Monopoly, but that will take a while-"

"Yay! I love that game!" Cream hopped over to the couch and sat down on the floor in front of it.

Erika's eye twitched. "But I have to finish-"

"Please? I haven't played the game in a looong time!" The bunny pulled out her puppy eyes and the feline sighed.

"Okay…" Erika pulled out her phone and set her alarm for five in the morning. _That should be enough time._ The cat got the game and sat down with Cream, starting it after she shut down her computer. She set up the board. "Now…what piece do you want to be?"

"I want to be the dog if you don't mind!"

The next morning, Erika was sleeping soundly in her pajamas on her couch, snoring softly. Her phone was sitting on the small table by her head, so when it rang at five she would be able to hear it loud and clear.

Standing by the couch was Cream, stretching and yawning. The bunny then reached over and grabbed the cat's phone, unlocking it, and turning off the alarm. She laughed to herself as she set it back down. Rubbing the back of her head, Cream went over to the front door and slipped out of the apartment without making a sound.

* * *

Dull blue eyes stared at the front of the classroom in boredom as the teacher introduced the new student to the whole class. The owner of the sapphires swished his bushy tail lazily back and forth, picking his sharpened teeth with his claw. He wished that he could be home right now, chilling and watching TV, but nooo… he had to come to this hell hole. _Ugh, is junior year ever going to end?_

"…I hope you all accept Miles in our class family. Miles, you can take the empty desk next to Devin. And Devin, would you raise your hand please?"

Groaning to himself, the red fox sluggishly did so, and the new kid promptly took the seat by him. Curious, the vulpine examined the newcomer in the corner of his eye, noting that the yellow fox had two tails and was ridiculously young to be in high school, let alone be a junior.

Miles caught his gaze and tilted his head. "Yes?"

"You look like you should be in elementary school." Devil commented bluntly.

The other chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "Heh, I take that as a complement. And by the way, you can call me Tails."

The older vulpine snorted. "Wouldn't doubt why."

Before Tails could respond to Devin's borderline rudeness, the teacher cut off their conversation. "Now that everyone's here, I'll want to tell you that today is a review day for the Biology test tomorrow." Devin scowled, having forgotten about that. _And I bet Mr. Perfect is gonna get another hundred on it._ Blue eyes glared over to where a wolf was sitting in front of the class. _Smart, girlfriend stealing ass…_ "And Miles, you will be exempt from this test of course."

Tails shook his head at the teacher, inwardly smirking when he noticed Devin's look to another fellow classmate. "I want to take it Mrs. Smith."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Alright, then you'll take it tomorrow with the rest of the class. Everyone, just look over your notes over this period."

When she finished talking, Tails turned to Devin who was still sending daggers. "Why are you looking at him like that?"

The fox redirected his glare at the new kid. He bared his canines some. "None of your business."

Tails held up his hands. "I'm sorry!" He then glanced around the class to see that everyone was studying, except his neighbor. "So…are you not going to study?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because no matter how much I study, I always fail the tests in here." Devin growled out before cutting his eyes over to the same wolf. "Unlike _someone_ who needs to just look at something _once_…" He muttered darkly under his breath.

Tails hummed to himself, thinking, before speaking up again. "You know…I can help you out."

Devin rose a brow. "Whaddya mean?"

The bi-tailed fox leaned closer and whispered, "You can cheat on me during the test." The other fox looked suspicious, so Tails continued, "I'm not going to mess up your grade on purpose, and I'm pretty sure I will ace this test. Any kind of science is my strong point." A vulpine grin spread across his face. "You want to show up Wade, don't you?"

Devin nodded. "Hell yeah I do- hold up, how do you know his-"

Tails waved him off. "Don't worry about it. Just make sure you don't get caught tomorrow, kay?"

The next day, Devin was whistling to himself as he packed his stuff up in his history class, the last one of today. He was in a _very_ happy mood because he knew he passed the biology test he took in the morning. The fox chuckled to himself, glad that his genius neighbor was kind enough to share answers.

"Devin."

"Hm?" The red fox glanced up to see his history teacher standing by his desk.

"Mrs. Smith wants to see you. You may leave since there are only ten minutes left in class."

Shrugging, Devin put on his backpack and strolled out the room, heading toward Smith's. He wasn't really worried about anything. She was probably going to congratulate him on finally getting a higher grade than Mr. Perfect.

It wasn't long until he was standing at his biology teacher's desk, hands shoved in his pants pockets.

"Do you know why I called you in here?"

"Nope." He clipped.

"Well," Mrs. Smith pulled out his test along with Wade's. Devin, seeing this, furrowed his brow. "I don't think that it is a coincidence that you and Wade got the same grade, missing the exact same questions."

The fox's stomach dropped when he realized what she was accusing him of. "What? I didn't cheat!"

"You didn't? Really? Because I don't think it's realistic for you to go from getting forties on your tests to getting a ninety-five on this one. Now tell me the truth, did you cheat? Your suspension won't be as long if you tell the truth."

Devin slouched. "Yeah…but not on Wade though."

"Tell me who so I can talk to them."

The vulpine scratched the back of his head. "Tails helped me out." What? He wasn't going to take the heat by himself. "Er…Miles Prower."

Mrs. Smith frowned. "You're lying. There is no Miles Prower in any of my classes." Devin's jaw dropped to the ground. "You're suspended for two days and you have to retake the test when you return."

* * *

A high-pitched bell rung as a human in her early thirties sauntered through the door of her favorite clothing store, still shivering from the biting cold outside. She sighed in relief when the heat washed over her, taking off her beloved black puffy coat. It matched her short hair.

After hanging the coat on a convenient rack, she glanced around the very large store and had to keep her inner teenager in check when she saw that there were new arrivals hanging in the back of the place, practically calling her name.

She vaguely noticed how she was the only one in sight. The only thing on her mind right now was buying new outfits, her debit card begging to be swiped.

The spirited women all but skipped to the back of the store, purse hitting her side with every step. In front of the horde of fashionable clothes, the dark haired women tapped her chin as she surveyed her options. After a minute, she smiled and reached for a purple jacket. It seemed thinner than the one she wore in here, but it would serve its purpose. And of course, she believed that it would look great on her!

"Oh honey…"

Surprised, she retracted her hand and spun around to see a Mobian bat shaking her head. The women placed her hand on her chest, breathing hard.

The bat grinned. "I'm sorry. Did I scare you?" She chuckled before stepping up to her side. "I didn't mean to, and actually, _you_ gave _me_ a heart attack when you were reaching out for that hideous jacket."

The woman blinked, forgetting quickly about her little fright. "Hideous?" She furrowed her brow. "Really? I thought that it would look good on me…"

The white mammal shook her head again. "The structure of it won't complement your body at all! It would hide your curves. You have to show them off, hon."

Open to any type of fashion advice, the women asked, "Well…what do you suggest?" She read the other's nametag. _Rouge…I haven't seen her working here before. Probably just hired._

Rouge grinned before looking around. She then picked out two stylish coats, a red one and a navy one, that the women wouldn't have given a second glance to. "These will attract attention from everyone nearby. Women will be jealous and men will be drooling. Now, which one will be going home with you today?"

"Are you serious?" The bat nodded and the raven's inner teenager squealed. An excited smile grew on the her face. "Then I'll take both of them!"

It was Rouge's turn to blink. "Are you sure? One is really expensive-"

She waved the bat off. "Money isn't a problem!"

"A big spender huh?" Rouge smirked. "My favorite kind. Alright then hon, are you ready to go on a spree? With my help, you will be the best dressed woman in the city!"

Spurred on by those words, the raven smiled brightly. "I'm ready! Help me put together the greatest outfits!"

The bat chuckled again before they both roamed around the clothing store, Rouge pointing out every piece of clothing that the women could pull off perfectly. She also gave advice on jewelry and perfume as she did so, the women keenly tuning in to all her words, not wanting to miss a single one.

Twenty minutes later, both of the females had their arms full of different articles of clothing. Rouge led the woman to the check-out counter and dumped the shirts, pants, etc onto the flat surface. The raven did the same.

"Cash or card?" Rouge asked politely after she scanned and bagged all the items.

"Card." The lady answered, digging in her purse before handing over the plastic. The bat swiped it and handed it back. The raven smiled gratefully as she picked up one of the bags. "Thank you so mu-" Just then, the overly filled bag ripped and the clothes tumbled out. "Oh my!" She put her card on the counter before bending down, gathering the items.

"It's not your fault!" Rouge joined her. "I shouldn't have used one bag for all that." The duo picked up the clothes before putting them into bags. They stood up and the bat waved her off. "Hope to see you soon!" When the women left, stumbling a bit out the door, Rouge's smile warped into a smirk. She grabbed the card still on the counter.

_Sorry Catherine…maybe if you hadn't bought so much, you would still have this…_

Suddenly, the bat was standing outside the store, twirling the card between her fingers. She looked back and forth before seeing a figure walking on the sidewalk, either a man or a woman, coming this direction.

Rouge laughed to herself and dropped the debit card on the ground.

* * *

A burly brown bear in an orange jumpsuit sat down at a round table with a huff, staring at the chunky slop that was splattered on his plate. Disgruntled, he grabbed the plastic spoon and scooped up a bit, throwing the foul stuff into his mouth. He shivered as it went down. A year in prison…and he still wasn't used to the stuff. At least he was planned to be released this afternoon, so today would be the last time he had to endure the food.

"Well well James!" The bear glanced over in time to see a red hawk take a seat on his right. It was Kev, the first person he had 'gotten along with' in prison. The bird had a grin on his face. "Looks like ya goin to be part of society again! Imma miss ya man!"

James just grunted. "I'm not sure if I'm going to miss you."

"Aw! I'm hurt! This year's been kinda fun." Kev shook his head in amusement and sipped some water. "And all cuz you robbed that place-"

The bear rolled his eyes. "How many times to I have to tell you-"

"Yeah yeah. You were framed."

"I was!" Before their conversation could continue, another voice cut in.

"James." Said Mobian whipped his head around at the sound of his name spoken by an unfamiliar voice. Sitting to his left was someone he's never seen before. It was a black hedgehog with red stripes and eyes of the same color. _He has to be a fish. Hmm…he has some nerve talking to someone like this._

"What do you want, fish?"

The hedgehog smirked at that, but didn't comment on it. "I want to talk."

_To talk?_

"Hey! Move it!" All eyes drifted over to the newcomer who was glaring at the striped Mobian. It was Cam, a white tiger. James and he just tolerated each other. It was better than the hate shared around the prison, so they stuck together. "That's my seat, _fish._" The cat growled out.

The hedgehog returned the glare ten-fold. "Go sit somewhere else."

Cam, insanely quick to anger, dropped his tray before throwing a powerful punch. To James's surprise, the newbie caught it. "Wrong choice." The hedgehog's voice dripped venom before he jumped up and punched Cam hard in the nose. When the tiger gasped in pain, the rodent hopped up again, spun around, and kicked the cat in the head, knocking him out. "Humph." Was the only thing he said before turning back to James, "Meet me at the main bridge at nine." Then he walked away.

Kev gaped. "What in the hell happened?"

The bear wasn't faring better. "I have no idea."

Later that day after finding a raggedy apartment, James was waiting on the bridge. He didn't know why he was meeting this stranger out here. Pure curiosity, he guessed. He also wondered how in the heck the other would get out of prison. Was he even an inmate? He didn't have the jump suit on…

"You're here." James looked over to the source of the voice only to choke on his own spit. The hedgehog had a container of gasoline in one hand and a box of matches in another.

"Wha..?"

"I know where he lives."

The bear frowned. "Who?"

"Don't play dumb. He man who framed you."

James connected the dots almost immediately. "No…I'm not going to jail again."

"Hn. And I thought that you would want revenge on the person who took away your freedom, your girlfriend, your _future_." A spark of anger flared in the bear's chest, and he didn't know if it was aimed at the hedgehog for knowing so much or the topic of their conversation. He clenched his fists and the striped one smirked, turning around and walking off. "Follow me." Vengeance clouding his mind and not wanting to seem like a pansy, James obeyed.

The bear let out a low laugh as the hedgehog flicked the match against the house, watching as it burst into flames. A dark grin grew on his face as the bright flames lit up the night sky, knowing that revenge has been served.

That was until the other spoke again.

"I'm going to check on your red friend. Have a nice life."

James cocked his head. "What's that suppose to-"

"Put your hands up!"

His blood ran cold as he turned slowly to see a group of cop cars and a multitude of policemen pointing their guns at him. He raised his paws, completely petrified.

"Get on your knees!"

"B-But I didn't start the fire! He di-" James's stomach dropped when he saw nothing but empty space beside him, the hedgehog gone.

"You have the matches in your _hand!_ Get on the ground!"

Wide eyed, James squeezed his left paw only to feel the box of fire-starters. _But…How?!_

"The last time I'm telling you. _Get on your knees!_"

* * *

A middle-aged college professor stood slouched over a sink, staring tiredly into a mirror that reflected his conflicted state. He sighed heavily, gripping the sides of the porcelain tightly. _I-I can't go back in there. But you have to! You have to teach a class! But…I can't…I can't focus with her in there. You have a job to do! Don't let her get in the way! I know…I know…but…_

His thoughts were derailed by a high-pitched giggle. "What's the matter, Professor Jones?"

Frowning, Jones spun around and took in the pink hedgehog grinning knowingly at him. "Why are you here?" He asked in an authoritative voice. "This is the men's teacher bathroom, in a human college." He narrowed his brown eyes. "And you don't look old enough to enroll here. So again, why?" The young Mobian just giggled again, a certain glint in her eyes that made the professor think he was caught in a trap. "Answer me before I call campus police!"

"I'm not here to talk about me, Mr. Jones." The pinkette grinned as she linked her hands behind her back. However, she radiated everything but innocence. "I heard that you have a problem." Her eyes were half-mast know. "I have the solution…"

Jones grimaced and took a step back. "That's it! I'm reporting you for trespassing!" He pulled out his phone, but her next words kept him from dialing.

"I know you don't want to do that…" The pink hedgehog sauntered closer to him. "You do want Mary in your class, riiight?" The strangled gasp she received translated into an understood yes. "Mediocre grades…but better than average looks?" She smiled. "Am I wrong?"

Long blonde hair and shining green eyes flashed in his head before he shook the image away. "What….What do you want from me?"

"Nothing really." The Mobian turned towards the mirror to groom her hanging quills. "I'm here to help _you._" She giggled, her voice echoing in the man's mind. "I'm going to be your lookout for today. Tell her that you two need to talk about her grade in the class. Maybe…about some _extra credit_." She purred the last part out as she strolled over to the bathroom door.

"Wh-What _are_ you?"

She smiled as she opened the door. "Let's just say…I'm your personal Cupid." The door slammed behind her.

Jones just held his head in his hands, feeling more confused now than when he walked in.

Amy grinned victoriously as she stood outside a specific classroom, leaning against the wall adjacent to the door. The school day just ended, but…a very reluctant teacher and a blonde bimbo had yet to make an appearance. Well, according to the noises heard inside, Mr. Jones was pretty sure of his actions by this point.

Pink ears twitched as she heard footsteps coming her way. Amy rose a brow at the skinny black-haired college boy with headphones in. She waited for a reaction, but the other just strolled past her and the classroom, minding his own business. The hedgehog scoffed to herself as he disappeared out of sight.

_He didn't see me…that's just great. _Amy had to keep herself from throwing a mini-tantrum. _There's no way I'll win at this rate!_

Just then, another student turned the corner.

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

Inwardly laughing, the pinkette put a finger on her lips as the red-head came closer. "Shhh…just listen…"

The girl, now in front of the hedgehog, pushed up her glasses and frowned. Then, her features twisted into complete disgust when she recognized the sounds. "Is that Professor Jones and…! I've got to report this!" Turning on her heels, she ran away, no doubt going to find an administrator.

Amy just watched her go, amused. _And the next victim will be…_

* * *

There was a knock on his door.

"Come in!" The man in a grey suit with light brown hair pulled into a messy ponytail watched nervously as his door was pulled open. The anxiousness was then replaced with pure curiosity when a blue hedgehog waltzed in, not his boss. He furrowed his brow when the Mobian hopped into the chair opposite of him and propped his feet on the man's desk. The rodent smirked as he linked his hands behind his head.

The business man frowned, eyeing the other. "What are you doing in my office? And acting like you own the place?"

The hedgehog held up two fingers. "One, because that's how you're always supposed to enter a room. And two, because Boss man wanted me to check up on ya."

The brunette didn't believe him. "You…work here?" He asked dubiously. "You seem too-"

The blue 'hog waved him off, rolling his eyes. "Yeah yeah, I get that a lot, but back to you pal." The rodent tilted his head. "Boss man told me that you've been slacking today, and to get you back on track. But…" He got out his chair and went over to the man's side of the desk, throwing an arm around the bewildered worker's shoulders. "I wanna know what's got you distracted. Just let it out, bud."

The brunette shrugged off his arm, but didn't tell the rodent to move away. Nervousness back full force, he glanced quickly over to his desk phone. "N-No…it's personal matters."

"Aw come on! Did you do somethin bad?" The hedgehog patted the man on the back. "Whatever ya tell me won't leave this room." He winked. "Guaranteed!"

The worker stared at him for a moment before sighing. He glanced at the phone again. "W-Well…" He then shook his head rapidly and pushed the newcomer away from him. "Just leave! Why should I tell you? I don't even know you!"

The blue Mobian stumbled back a bit before regaining his balance. He frowned. "Not cool dude!" Then he grinned and pointed to himself. "Okay then, I'm Sonic the hedgehog! So now you know me…" Sonic walked back beside the man and leaned a hand on the desk. "And you tell me, so I won't tell Boss man that you were taking a little nap in here."

"You wouldn't!"

Sonic shrugged. "I don't want to. I just wanna help you out. You're gonna let me, Chad?"

Said man slumped in defeat, not even surprised that the other knew his name. "Fine. It's just that…" His hand twitched, conflicted on whether it should reach for the phone or not. "I-I uh…" Chad looked over into expectant emerald eyes. He scratched the back of his head. "I…cheatedonmywifeandIdon'tknowifIshouldtellherornot."

Sonic whistled lowly. "Wooow bud…you're in deep."

Chad glared. "Yeah thanks. I knew that already." His gaze softened. "I just don't know what to do…" The brunette stared at the beckoning telephone before he gritted his teeth. "Dammit, I've got to fess up to this!" He reached for the phone. "I'm going to call her!"

Sonic grabbed his wrist, shaking his head slowly. "Whoa there bud! Little hasty, aren't cha?"

"W-What?"

The hedgehog let go and took a seat on the desk, kick his legs back and forth. "Why are ya telling the dame? What she doesn't know, won't hurt her, am I right?"

Chad frowned. _This guy…_ "Are you crazy? If I don't tell her…it's going to haunt my mind!"

Sonic scoffed before chuckling, rubbing his nose. "Are you serious right now pal? If you don't spill, you're _helping_ her."

The brunette blinked, stunned. "H-Helping…?"

The hedgehog nodded. "Yeah sure! I mean, if ya tell her, she's gonna be _devastated_. Down to the core!" Sonic smirked. "But if you _don't_ tell her, and she has no chance of knowing…"

"…then she won't be hurt…" Chad finished slowly.

The Mobian snapped his fingers. "Now ya got it! And plus…" Sonic snickered. "If I were you, I would be proud. Some guys out there can't get one chick, let alone two."

"Right…" The man replied thoughtfully, understanding the other's words. A small smile grew on his face. "Guess I'm quite the charmer, huh?"

Sonic laughed. "Seems like it!"

Before either could say anything else, the desk phone rang. Chad reached for it and was about to hold it up to his ear when the other stopped him. "Put it on speaker." Sonic whispered. The man wondered why, but did so anyway.

"Hello? Chad Baker here-"

"_We are __**so**__ through Chad!" _The worker was taken aback. _Huh?_ The voice on the other end was filled with sadness. _"I thought you __**loved **__me!"_

"I do Rebecca! Why-"

"_Then why did I get a phone call from another women that you were 'hers'? Huh? Chad…you gave me your last name… I thought… I thought_…_" _There was a sob. _"Just-Just don't call me anymore."_ The phone went dead.

Chad just stared at it, whatever that just happened not registering in his head until Sonic whistled again. This time, his eyes glinted in mischief. "Whoa…tough luck bud."

Tears welling up in his eyes, the worker shot out of his chair. "You! You somehow…planned this!" He reached out to grab the rodent.

Sonic weaved out of the way and trotted over to the door. "It wasn't me pal. It was all you." He gave a two-fingered salute. "See ya around!" The hedgehog left the room.

Chad sprinted over to the door and yanked it back open. "Get back here you filthy rat!" His yell only attracted the attention of all nearby workers…and his boss. Sonic was nowhere to be found.

"Mr. Baker." Boss growled out. "Come to my office. Now."

* * *

Sonic sighed as he plopped down onto a comfy couch he hadn't laid on since last year. He stretched out and looked around the small one-roomed house. It had a pretty simple layout, of course. It practically just had a few couches scattered around and a flat-screen TV mounted on the wall, which was rarely used. No kitchen, no bedrooms, no bathrooms…they weren't needed.

"Huh, I thought that you would be the late one this year."

Sonic, not surprised at the other's sudden appearance, smirked over at Knuckles who was sitting on another one of the couches. He was snaking on a bunch of grapes. "Come on Knux! You're takin blows to my pride here."

The echidna scoffed. "As if that was possible."

"Hey, throw one over here." Knuckles rolled his eyes before tossing the blue hedgehog a grape. He wouldn't take no for an answer anyway.

"So…" Sonic started after he swallowed, smirking. "How ya think you did?"

"Tch. You ask me that every year. You know the tradition."

The hedgehog grunted, still grinning. "Right right. I was just seeing if you would answer earlier."

A new voice filled the room. "Are you harassing Knuckie, Blue?" The boy's eyes shifted over to the bat who claimed the spot beside the echidna. Rouge crossed her legs. "If you are, can I help?"

Knuckles grunted. "Haha. That was funny, bat-girl."

She examined her glove, checking to see if there were any specks of dirt on it. She know good and well that there won't be any, though. "Thanks, I try."

"So Rouge," Sonic sat up some on the couch, focusing on the bat. "You got anything to show this year?"

The bat smiled widely. "Of course! When do I not?" Rouge reached down her shirt and pulled out a jar of perfume. Sonic and Knuckles shared an exasperated look as she spritzed herself. "I found this! The most exquisite and _expensive_ perfume out there!"

"Perfect for you to steal, isn't it?"

Rouge grinned over to Shadow leaning by the wall, arms crossed. "Exactly! You know me so well, Shadow."

"_Everybody_ knows, Rouge." Sonic teased before smirking over to the black hedgehog. "And look who decided to show up on time this year! Good job, Shads!"

The striped 'hog clenched his fists and glared, but didn't move. "_Don't _provoke me, hedgehog. I'm not in the mood for your attitude today."

Sonic scoffed. "When are you ever?"

Before Shadow could launch himself at the blue annoyance, another pink one popped into existence, latching on to Sonic's arms. Shadow calmed himself down, enjoying the pure discomfort present on Sonic's face.

Said blue Mobian sighed as he glanced down at the purring hedgehog. "Knuckles."

"I gotcha." The echidna finished off his grapes before standing up and grabbing the pinkette. She had a strong grip, but it was no match for Knuckles' when he yanked her away. It didn't hurt though.

Sonic wiped off his arm, inwardly sighing. "Hey Amy." She was his friend and all, but she knew her limits. It's when she pushed them when Sonic got annoyed.

The pinkette grinned, her eyes half-mast. "Hi my Sonikku… How about you and me go-"

"And that's enough of that, hon." Rouge reached out and grabbed Amy's arm before pulling her to the couch.

Now sitting beside the bat, the pink hedgehog pouted and puffed her cheeks. "But come on! Can't this year be different?"

"Nope." Sonic answered shortly. "What we have right now is good enough."

"But we don't have anything!"

Sonic grinned. "My point exactly."

"You might as well give up Amy, you know how Sonic is."

The blue hedgehog's grin turned into a full-blown smile before he reached over and gave his couch neighbor a noogie. "Tails! It's great to see you again bud!"

The kit laughed before pulling away, fixing his tuffs of hair. "You see me every year, Sonic!" _You see me every year so we can do this game. Yeah, I'm happy to see you too, but you will __**not **__win again like you did last year! It's my time to shine…_

Sonic saw the green monster in Tails' blue eyes, but didn't say anything. It was natural for the fox, after all. "But that's a long time in between, ya know? I don't wanna miss any milestone you hit!"

The kit pushed his bro playfully. "You know good and well that I don't grow, none of us do!"

A yawn then filled the air. "Sorry I'm so late… A middle schooler procrastinated in doing a project…"

Rouge waved the rabbit, who had just popped into existence, off. "It's alright Cream, we weren't waiting long." The newest Mobian smiled tiredly.

"Now that everyone's here, can we get this show on the-" Knuckles burped. "-road?" All Mobians in the room nodded, wanting to know themselves who won the game this year, each wishing that it were them. "Alright, I'll go first." He took a deep breath. "I've gotten 700, 321 people."

Cream sighed. "530,000…"

Rouge grinned. "730,000 people." Knuckles groaned, holding his head in his hands, mumbling that he needed a drink.

Amy squealed, ecstatic. "I've gotten 730,900 love sick people!" The bat's grin melted off her face.

_Are you serious? She got more than I did! Ugh… _"730,500…" Tails muttered.

Sonic and Shadow, the last ones left, stared at each other. One grinning while the other was glaring. Each were sizing the other up, both thinking that they had won. Because of that, they wanted to reveal their number last to claim their victory. Eventually, and disgruntledly, Shadow opened his mouth.

"I've influenced 998,385."

Sonic's grin widened and everyone instantly knew the winner of the 'How many lives can you ruin' game. "One million _even_. Guess there are a lot of proud guys and gals out there."

Tails rolled his eyes, inwardly seething. "Of course…"

In a split second, Shadow was across the room, glaring down at Sonic. The blue hedgehog smirked before standing up, staring at the other in his eyes. The striped 'hog jabbed a finger into Sonic's chest. "I was so _close_." He snarled, quills bristling. "You got lucky, but this year _I'm _going to win. Be prepared to lose, _Faker._"

Sonic just grinned, not intimidated by the other at all. He pushed away Shadow's finger, being the bigger man by not getting angry. "Faker?" The blue hedgehog chuckled. "I'm the _last_ person ya should be calling that."

Sonic smirked condescendingly.

"I am the original, after all."

* * *

**Didja figure it the AU out? If you did, congrats! If you didn't well...**

**...**

**...**

**...They each played the part of the 'Seven Sins'! Pride, Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Wrath, Sloth, and Envy!**

**I know, completely random XD But the idea popped into my head and it just wouldn't leave! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it!**

**In case you're wondering, Tails represents envy because if _I_ were in someone's shadow all the freaking time, I would feel mad about it occasionally. Knuckles is gluttony because we really don't know all that he does on that island of his, do we? And Cream is sloth because...um...yeah...just because. X)**


End file.
